With St. John Paul II and St. Teresa of Avila as your guides, these pages will show you how to transform the rote recitation of prayer into a profound worship of Christ, drawing your hearts to bow in awe before the Triune God whom the Rosary reveals to us. You’ll learn how to place every moment of your life before His throne, seeing in them the mystery of the Incarnation.

You’ll learn the difference between contemplation and meditation, and how these great saints approached the reading of sacred writings not as a mere intellectual exercise, but as a prayer. You’ll learn how to enrich your vocal prayer, and how the Rosary can unite vocal prayer and mental prayer in a way that can lift your heart to the heights of contemplation.

To look upon the face of Christ is the task of every follower of Christ, and there is no better way to contemplate life of Christ than through the Rosary. Read these pages, and you’ll soon follow in the footsteps of St. Teresa of Ávila and Pope St. John Paul II, finding in the Rosary a meeting point with God that becomes your first taste of a deeper union with Him.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"Provides powerful insight into why praying the Rosary can become a pathway into contemplative prayer and union with God." Dr. Anthony Lilles, Academic Dean, St. John's Seminary, Camarillo

"This book invites us to move from speaking to adoring, from looking with the eyes of the body to wondrous discovery with the heart." Bishop Thomas Olmsted, Diocese of Phoenix

--Personal Endorsements

This book invites us to move from speaking to adoring, from looking with the eyes of the body to wondrous discovery with the heart. --Bishop Thomas Olmsted, Diocese of Phoenix

From the Inside Flap

You know that in an Apostolic Letter in 2002, Pope John Paul II added five Luminous Mysteries. Did you know that in that same Letter he also called for a new way of praying the Rosary?

St. John Paul II's new way of praying the Rosary was based on the teachings of St. Theresa of Avila and has become known as the Contemplative Rosary because it more perfectly unites vocal prayer and meditation, transforming the prayers of the Rosary into a contemplative meeting with God.

Did you know about these changes? Have you tried them?

In our new book, The Contemplative Rosary, we have not only incorporated the five new Luminous Mysteries, we have included as well the many other changes Pope John Paul made to the Rosary.

Here are his additions to the texts and prayers -- additions small and large -- that, as John Paul intended, unite the Rosary more closely to the official liturgical prayers of the Church as well as to Scripture.

Here are also scores of full-color images for your contemplation that anchor your attention in each Mystery and transform your Rosary from a hasty, habitual recitation into a profound speaking to God and a keen listening to Him.

Following the wise advice of St. Theresa of Avila and the new method proposed by St. John Paul, you'll find here for each mystery:

A lovely, full-color classical painting depicting the events in the Mystery, for help in your contemplation

A unique announcement of the Mystery

A statement of the expected fruits of the Mystery

The Scriptural passage you should consider before embarking on your prayers of the Mystery

A call for a moment of silence in order to recollect yourself before entering the presence of God

Plus much more, so that finally you can begin to pray the Rosary as Saint John Paul wants you to pray it!

Top customer reviews

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Try as I might, I have never had a great devotion to the rosary. My meditation on the mysteries would last through two Hail Marys and the next eight were spent thinking about something else. However, I've always liked praying the rosary with the scriptures or other meditations, so when I heard about this book, I knew I would want to buy it.

There are number of things I like about this book, first,it gives us a look at how St. John Paul II and St. Teresa approach prayer in general and the prayers of the rosary in particular. For those who have forgotten how to pray the rosary, a chapter is devoted to the how-tos. Then for each mystery there is a scriptural meditation, beautiful artwork and short reflections to help keep you focused on prayer. You don't have to use all the meditations at one sitting, just listen to the Holy Spirit as you move through the prayer.

My favorite part is the addition of the statement of faith that is prayed during the Hail Mary. For example, for the Annunciation, when you pray, "blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus", you would add "who was conceived in you by the Holy Spirit". I've only been using this book for three days, but that little addition has made all the difference for me. Admittedly, sometimes I get through the entire Hail Mary and realize I was on auto-pilot and did not add the statement of faith. But when I start the next Hail Mary, I slow down and become more attentive. I look forward to having those statements of faith memorized so I don't always have to refer to the book.

I recommend this book for people who are still trying to love the rosary as well as those who already do. This book just might help you go deeper in your love for our Lord.

I love praying the Rosary but frequently find myself distracted while praying it. I often catch myself mindlessly repeating "Hail Marys" with my mouth while my mind goes off on its own little adventure (an "adventure" that often has little to nothing to do with the mysteries, I have to admit). The Contemplative Rosary is an excellent book that can help people overcome a "wandering mind" while also showing us how to pray with the whole heart. I particularly loved the section that addresses distractions and dryness in prayer. The first few chapters of the book speak about prayer and contemplation as seen through the eyes of St. John Paul II and St. Teresa of Avila. One of the chapters explains the difference between meditation and contemplation, with the focus on deepening your prayer life in order to open your heart to infused contemplation and a closer relationship with God. The remainder of the book show us how to pray the rosary in a way that draws us more deeply into the life of Jesus. I found the reflections at the end of each mystery very helpful and liked how they gave me a fresh new "peek" into the life of Christ. This is a great book for folks who are caught in a prayer "rut" and looking for a way to deepen their relationship with Christ. I'll end my review with a wonderful quote from this book that seems to capture its essence: "Our life on earth is meant to prepare us for the life of Heaven. We ponder the face of Christ not only in paintings, or in our imagination, or figuratively through reading the gospels; as we mature in Christ, He brings the soul into His presence in an ever more frequent and growing union. In infused contemplation God draws us to look upon His face ever more fully."

Excellent book! The size is especially nice, it can easily be carried in a purse or book bag. Will be easy to mail. Beautiful illustrations and insightful mediations on the mysteries. If you struggle with distractions, there are some helpful hints...Read it, pray it, share it. Would be a wonderful gift for families to further their spiritual devotion to Our Lord and His Blessed Mother. Give one to your pastor ! I highly recommend purchasing a few to have on hand for gifts, especially nice as October is the Month for extra devotion to Our Blessed Mother.. Thank you for writing his book.

The Contemplative Rosary. The authors of this book, Dan Burke and Connie Rossini have found a way to help prepare us for a deeper meditation while praying the Rosary; a way of pondering in our hearts, like Mother Mary, the face of God in Jesus. It opens our minds to the realization of God’s intimate desire to draw near to us. We accomplish this by drawing near to God. This beautiful book helps draw us near to God by means of meditative prayer using the exquisite pictures, meditations and reflections for the different mysteries of the Rosary. Also, of importance, is the addition of a brief statement of faith in relation to the mystery we are reflecting on. In the Hail Mary, the word ‘Jesus’, is the hinge that links the two halves of the Hail Mary. The book highlights that by adding a sentence that helps us pay attention. This discourages rote prayer. For example, the third Glorious Mystery, The Descent of the Holy Spirit: “Hail Mary, full of grace the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb Jesus, pouring forth His Holy Spirit. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death Amen.” Each time we pray the Hail Mary, we are reminded by this clausular method of the mystery we are contemplating which helps our mind to focus instead of wandering.I found using all these helps for meditation in this book a wonderful means of focusing and calming my mind and thus, a means of getting rid of distractions during prayer. That is huge, as we all tend to have problems with distractions during prayer.The authors instruct us that If during praying the Rosary, one feels the closeness of God or an impulse to dwell on a holy thought brought about my meditation, we should stop and stay in that moment until it passes and then go on praying. All of this prepares us, if we are persistent in prayer, to the possibility of God drawing us more closely to Him by infused contemplation, which is intimate union with Him, when it is His Will to do so.This book is a treasure that is rarely found and would also be a beautiful gift to present to anyone.